Letters to the Editor for Jan. 5

Please accept our heartfelt love and gratitude with regard to the pasta dinner benefit held for our family on Nov. 10. We wish to thank the Eagles Club for use of their premises and those that donated many hours of preparation for this event from start to finish. A very special thank you to Scarpelli's Restaurant in Torrington, all of those at United Construction and Engineering, Inc. in Torrington and The Law Firm of Bendett & McHugh, P.C. in Farmington for their enormous generosity and support for our family during this difficult time. Dozens of our friends as well as businesses in Torrington and Canton graciously donated items for raffles.

Thank you to our wonderful friends who helped organize this event as well as those that continue to keep us in their thoughts and prayers. Many new friendships have since formed which we are eternally grateful.

May God Bless each and every one of you and may He hold you and your family close to His heart to deliver a New Year of love, happiness and good health.

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--Todd, Lisa and Cody Whittemore, Torrington

The rules of the road

Many drivers don't understand the rules of the road. Many people, among other traffic violations, do not signal before they change lanes or turn right or left. They don't come to a complete stop when they can turn right on red, either. I am aware that we live in a very complex society.

Let's not forget that the negligence of some drivers can inflict serious damage to conscientious drivers. I do understand that some of our residents come to this nation with an education level below mediocrity. We should utilize the full potentiality of television, radio and newspapers to re-educate some members of our society. The media can bring some great knowledge and guide negligent people. The ancient Greeks used the theater, free of charge, to educate their citizens on many important issues, including the law!

--Dario Diorio, Torrington

What if ...

In light of the recent tragedy in Newtown, less than 50 miles away, I can't help but ask "What if such a horrific event occurred in the Town of Winchester?" As a Winchester police officer and more importantly, the parent of children in the town's school system, I urge each and every one of you to ask yourselves that same question. When you do, keep in mind that over the course of the past twenty years, the number of Winchester police officers has fallen from twenty four to its current level of sixteen.

Also keep in mind that the only training we sixteen have had in the past ten years is that minimally required to maintain our state certifications. In fact, despite having provided with seventeen new patrol rifles by the federal government at no cost to the town, those weapons remain locked in a closet in their original boxes because there is no money in the budget to train us how to safety utilize them. This is not fault of the Chief of the department. The chief has consistently requested funds for additional manpower, training and equipment only to see those requests rejected. Instead, this is the fault of our Board of Selectman.

The same Board of Selectmen that has refused to fund civil service so that competitive tests can be administered for the hiring of new police officers. And this same Board of Selectmen that has continued to cut the police chief's annual requests for manpower, training and equipment. Additionally, we need to blame all of those taxpayers who continuously vote down the budgets that include the police chief's request for additional funds. I clearly understand the difficult financial times we are all facing.

Myself and several of the officers are also taxpayers in town. However these requests for manpower, training, and equipment are vital for the protection of our town.

And now the superintendent of schools is requesting police coverage at our schools. This is a great idea however most of the time we run with only three officers on a shift and those officers have to respond to calls for service. We have six schools in town. Where would you like those three officers? Police services can be compared to insurance coverage. Nobody likes to pay for it, but when need it you want the best possible protection. It may be too late to address these issues on the current fiscal year but when considering future proposed increases to the police department budget please ask yourselves whether avoiding a tax increase is worth risking the safety of our children and residents.